IN: Senate spars over state-funded teacher gun training
Indiana’s Senate on Tuesday — after vivid and emotional arguments — approved legislation creating a state-funded gun training program for school staff. Lawmakers gave school districts the authority to let their employees carry firearms at school a decade ago, but offered no training protocols.
Legislators have repeatedly tried to mandate gun training, but have failed to overcome fierce resistance.
“This does not go nearly as far as what I wish it did, because I really wish that it were mandatory training,” the bill’s Senate sponsor Travis Holdman, R-Markle, said on the floor. “But we can’t get that done in the General Assembly because I have tried that for the last number of years, and it has failed miserably in the House every time.”
“I understand the minority’s consternation with the bill, but we take as much ground as we possibly can,” Holdman concluded. Democrats have generally argued against firearms in schools, but say that if the program continues, gun training should be mandatory.
House Bill 1177 would let schools with armed staff apply for a new grant — out of Indiana’s secured school fund — that can only be used on firearms training. The legislation also establishes a standardized 40-hour curriculum, with instruction on safe handling, carrying and storage.
https://indianacapitalchronicle.com/2023/04/19/senate-spars-over-state-funded-teacher-gun-training/
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